Hugh Montgomerie, 3rd Earl of Eglinton (c. 15311585) was a Scottish aristocrat who was a strong supporter of

Mary Queen of Scots Mary, Queen of Scots (8 December 1542 – 8 February 1587), also known as Mary Stuart or Mary I of Scotland, was List of Scottish monarchs, Queen of Scotland from 14 December 1542 until her forced abdication in 1567. The only surviving legit ...

. He was an important participant in a tumultuous period of Scottish history.

Early years

Born in 1531, Montgomerie was the great-grandson of

Hugh Montgomerie, 1st Earl of Eglinton Hugh Montgomerie, 1st Earl of Eglinton (c. 1460 – June 1545) was a Scottish peer. Life He was born about 1460 as the eldest son of Alexander Montgomerie, 2nd Lord Montgomerie, by his wife Catherine, daughter of Gilbert, lord Kennedy. H ...

. He attended St. Mary's College, St. Andrews in 1552. Soon after, Montgomerie married Janet Hamilton, the daughter of

James Hamilton James Hamilton may refer to: Dukes *James Hamilton, 1st Duke of Hamilton (1606–1649), heir to the throne of Scotland *James Hamilton, 4th Duke of Hamilton (1658–1712), Scottish nobleman *James Hamilton, 5th Duke of Hamilton (1703–1743), Sco ...

, then First Earl of Aran. Although Montgomerie was a Catholic, he originally supported his Protestant father-in-law politically. In October 1559, Montgomery brought forces to

Edinburgh Edinburgh is the capital city of Scotland and one of its 32 Council areas of Scotland, council areas. The city is located in southeast Scotland and is bounded to the north by the Firth of Forth and to the south by the Pentland Hills. Edinburgh ...

to support Hamilton and the Scottish

Lords of the Congregation The Lords of the Congregation (), originally styling themselves the Faithful, were a group of Protestant Scottish nobles who in the mid-16th century favoured a reformation of the Catholic church according to Protestant principles and a Scottish ...

against French forces supporting the exiled Mary Stuart and the current Scottish government. In December 1559, Montgomerie renewed his pledge of support.

Support of Mary

However, as a practicing Catholic, Montgomerie was a frequent target of criticism by Protestant clerics, and was said to attend daily mass and had a priest on his personal staff. He soon switched sides to support Mary Stuart. In December 1560, soon after the death of Mary's teenage husband,

Francis II of France Francis II (; 19 January 1544 – 5 December 1560) was List of French monarchs, King of France from 1559 to 1560. He was also List of Scottish consorts, King of Scotland as the husband of Mary, Queen of Scots, from 1558 until his death in ...

, Montgomerie signed a pledge of support for her in a meeting at

Dunbar Castle Dunbar Castle was one of the strongest fortresses in Scotland, situated in a prominent position overlooking the Dunbar Harbour, harbour of the town of Dunbar, in East Lothian. Several fortifications were built successively on the site, near th ...

. In February 1561, he travelled to France to visit Mary. Hamilton returned with her to Scotland in August 1561, when she assumed the Scottish throne. On 15 May 1568 Montgomerie joined Mary's forces at the

Battle of Langside The Battle of Langside was fought on 13 May 1568 between forces loyal to Mary, Queen of Scots, and forces acting in the name of her infant son James VI. Mary’s short period of personal rule ended in 1567 in recrimination, intrigue, and disast ...

. After their defeat, he fled the field and spend the night hiding in an outhouse. On 19 August Parliament declared Montgomerie guilty of treason for failing to turn over his castles to the victor. In May 1571 he finally swore allegiance to the

Matthew Stewart, 4th Earl of Lennox Matthew Stewart, 4th Earl of Lennox (21 September 1516 – 4 September 1571) was a leader of the Catholic nobility in Scotland. He was the paternal grandfather of King James VI of Scotland. He owned Temple Newsam in Yorkshire, England. Origin ...

, the regent for the young king

James VI James may refer to: People * James (given name) * James (surname) * James (musician), aka Faruq Mahfuz Anam James, (born 1964), Bollywood musician * James, brother of Jesus * King James (disambiguation), various kings named James * Prince Ja ...

. In September 1571, Montgomerie was with Stewart when he was killed at a skirmish in

Stirling Stirling (; ; ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, city in Central Belt, central Scotland, northeast of Glasgow and north-west of Edinburgh. The market town#Scotland, market town, surrounded by rich farmland, grew up connecting the roya ...

. The raiding party, which included the Hamiltons, locked Montgomerie in his quarters under guard. In 1573, Montgomerie advocated tolerance for Catholics from the latest regent, Morton. In 1578. Morton used his influence to appoint Montgomerie as a Privy Councillor. In 1579, Montgomerie subscribed the order for prosecuting the Hamiltons for their roles in the murders of Mathew Stewart and another regent,

James Stewart, 1st Earl of Moray James Stewart, 1st Earl of Moray (c. 1531 – 23 January 1570) was a member of the House of Stewart as the illegitimate son of King James V of Scotland. At times a supporter of his half-sister Mary, Queen of Scots, he was the regent of Scotl ...

. When Morton fell out of power, Montgomerie served as an

assize The assizes (), or courts of assize, were periodic courts held around England and Wales until 1972, when together with the quarter sessions they were abolished by the Courts Act 1971 and replaced by a single permanent Crown Court. The assizes ex ...

for Morton's trial in 1581.

Marriage and issue

Montgomerie's first wife was Lady Jean Hamilton, a daughter of

Regent Arran In a monarchy, a regent () is a person appointed to govern a state because the actual monarch is a minor, absent, incapacitated or unable to discharge their powers and duties, or the throne is vacant and a new monarch has not yet been dete ...

and

Margaret Douglas Margaret Douglas, Countess of Lennox (8 October 1515 – 7 March 1578), born Lady Margaret Douglas, was the daughter of the Scottish queen dowager Margaret Tudor and her second husband Archibald Douglas, 6th Earl of Angus, and thus the granddau ...

. The Montgomeries had the marriage dissolved in 1562 and the couple had no children. Lady Jean died on 18 December 1596 and was buried in

Trinity College Kirk Trinity College Kirk was a Scottish monarchy, royal collegiate church in Edinburgh, Scotland. The kirk and its adjacent almshouse, Trinity Hospital, were founded in 1460 by Mary of Guelders in memory of her husband, King James II of Sco ...

. Like many aristocrats she had lent a large sum of money, 11,000

merks The merk () is a long-obsolete Scotland, Scottish silver coin. Originally the same word as a Mark (currency), money mark of silver, the merk was in circulation at the end of the 16th century and in the 17th century. It was originally valued at 1 ...

, to the goldsmith and financier

Thomas Foulis Thomas Foulis (floruit, fl. 1580–1628) was a Scottish goldsmith, mine entrepreneur, and royal financier. Thomas Foulis was an Edinburgh goldsmith and financier, and was involved in the mint and coinage, gold and lead mining, and from May 1591 t ...

and merchant

Robert Jousie Robert Jousie (or Joussie or Jowsie or Jossie; died 1626) was a Scottish textile merchant, financier, and courtier. He was involved in the collection and administration of the English subsidy of James VI. Jousie supplied fabrics used at the bapt ...

. Her will mentions woollen and Irish stitch coverlets and blankets of her "own making". That same year, Montgomerie married Agnes Drummond daughter of Sir John Drummond of Innerpeffray and

Monzie Castle Monzie Castle is a castellated mansion, near Monzie in Perth and Kinross, Scotland that incorporates an L-plan castle, L-plan, early 17th-century building that was enlarged in 1797–1800. It is a category A listed building. The current house ...

, (a granddaughter of

James IV of Scotland James IV (17 March 1473 – 9 September 1513) was List of Scottish monarchs, King of Scotland from 11 June 1488 until his death at the Battle of Flodden in 1513. He inherited the throne at the age of fifteen on the death of his father, James I ...

). The couple had the following children:Balfour Paul, Sir James, ''Scots Peerage'', Edinburgh 1904. vol iii, p441-442
/ref> * Hugh Montgomerie, 4th Earl of Eglinton *Robert Montgomerie of Giffen *Margaret Montgomerie, married

Robert Seton, 1st Earl of Winton Robert Seton, 1st Earl of Winton (1553 – 22 March 1603) was one of the Scottish peers who supported Mary, Queen of Scots. Early years The son of George Seton, 7th Lord Seton, Robert Seton grew up active in the affairs of his father and of t ...

*Agnes Montgomerie, married Robert Sempill, 4th Lord Sempill

Early years

Support of Mary

Marriage and issue

Notes

References

Further reading